VOICE OF THE PEOPLE (letter)

Snaring innocents

August 27, 2006|By Michelle Patt

Skokie — The recent calls for racial profiling of Muslim or Arab men misses an important point. What exactly does a "Muslim" or an "Arab" look like? "Muslim" refers to a religion, "Arab" to an ethnic group. All Muslims are not Arab. All Arabs are not Muslim. And there are millions of other people who may "look" like a Muslim or Arab but are not either one. How will the airport screeners distinguish between an Arab Muslim and an Arab Christian? Or a Jew who has an Arabic-sounding name? What about Muslims from Southeast Asia or Eastern Europe? What about converts to Islam, such as several of the suspects in the recent liquid explosives plot were reported to be?

Racial profiling casts a wide net in hopes of snaring someone. Profiling can end up snaring millions of innocent people who "look" like they fit the profile, while still missing intended targets who do not fit that racial profile.

A much more efficient approach would be to rely on intelligence and surveillance and gathering evidence on actual suspects, instead of blindly targeting people based on the color of their skin or their religion.

The Nazis targeted people because of their religion, racial characteristics and ethnicity.